William s



(No Model.)

W. S. PLUMMER.

' FRUIT DRIER. N0. 343,607; Patented Jima 15, 1886.

WITNESSBS 4 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM s. PLUMMEE, oF sAN JosE, CALIFORNIA,

FRUIT-DRIER.

PEC'IFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 343,607, dated June 15,A 1886.

l Application vfled August 18, 1885. Serial No. 174,742. (No model.) 4

To all whom it may concern..-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM S. PLUMMER, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Jos, in the county of Santa Clara and State of California, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Fruit-Evaporators, of which the following is a description.

The invention is an improvement in fruitevaporators of the class represented in the Patent N o. 261,036, granted me July 11, 1882.

The present invention has for an object to provide simple and efficient means whereby the air deflected under the upper trays will be caused to move upward through the same and will be prevented from passing off at the side; and the object is to construct the heatconductors in such manner thatavacuum will be formed above the trays, and the heated air below the same Will be drawn rapidly up through them, so as to expedite the evaporation of the juices of the fruit and prevent the dampening of same by the vapors rising from the lower trays.

The invention has other objects, which will be described more fully hereinafter.

The invention consists in certain novel constructions and combinations of parts as will be more fully described and/pointed out in the claim.

In the drawings, Figures l and 2 are vertical sections of my evaporating-chamber on, respectively, planes parallel with and at right angles to the doors thereof. Fig. 3 is atransverse section of the chamber above the deiiector, looking down thereon; and Fig. 4 is a transverse section below the defieetor, look- Ing up.

The position of the trays is indicated in dotted lines. The side and back walls, A, A, and B, of the casing are preferably curved transversely and bulged outward for the purposes presently described.

For supporting the trays I provide horizontal rods C, two or more in the same horizontal plane, and the trays are slided on such rods, and are so formed that their edges rest a slight distance from the walls and the front or door of the casing. The rods may be secured to the casing 'in any suitable manner. In the present instance their ends rest in uprights CC', and such construction is preferred because it is `-simple, cheaply made, 4and in great part relieves the casing of the weight of the trays.

By the rods, it will be seen, I dispense with the slides now commonly used,'and provide supports for the trays, which supports are at the same time light and can be nlade at a much reduced cost over the ordinary traysupports.

The spaces between the edges of' the trays and the side and back walls of' the ease form air chambers or spaces to a point about six or seven trays from the top, at which point a plate, D, extends transversely across the space, forming a deliector Which throws the heat in under the upper trays. This deilector may be similar to the deiiectors shown in my former f patent, above referred to, and it also has an opening, d, such as shown in said patent. However, in the said patent, the air deflected inward by the plate will pass out and up alongside the trays, instead of up through them. In the present instance, I provide plates E,

.which preferablyk join at their lower ends to the defleetor, and are separated from the casing, forming chambers E. Manifestly the lower edges of the plateE may be disconnected from the defiectors, but it is preferred to secure them to such part as before described. These plates extend from side to side of the casing and rest iiush against the edges of the trays in the practice of the invention.

The furnace or heater may be of any suitable construction, and be located within or properly connected with the lower end of the drying-chamber.

In operation it will be seen the heat passes up through and on opposite sides of the lower trays until'the deflectors are reached, at which point the hot air is forced inward under the upper sets of trays, where it will be held from passing off at the edges by the plate E. The

air surrounding the upper trays will be thus Ire-expanded or heated andthe evaporation be facilitated. The air passing up between the plates E and the casing ows out above the fruit-trays and passes rapidly out of the chimney or ilue, forming avacuum below it which draws the hot air quickly up through the upper trays above the deflectors, and prevents the vapors arising from the fruit in the lower trays IOO from dalnpening that in the upper trays, as will be seen.

The easing is preferably formed of metal curved or bulged outwardly at the center of its sides and back end to form the air-spaces without materially increasing the eross-scc tional area of the dryingehaniber.

It will be noti eed that the front edges of the trays are set back from the door, so that a portion ofthe warm air may pass up in front of the trays and prevent the fruit on the latter from being aiiected by the eold air from the door.

Havingthus described lny invention, whatI elaini as new is A- fruit evaporator comprising a easing, trays supported therein, dellectors projected from the inner side of the casing inward to WILLIAM s. rLUMMEn.

Witnesses;

l?. B. TURPIN, G. A. lnrrrr. 

